Rolling Chamber
by Fragmented Thoughts
Summary: This 3-part story gives a little more depth into the events and state of minds of the people involved that led up to Barret losing his right hand at North Corel.
1. Part 1

****

Before we get into the story, let me say a few things to clarify. This story takes place about 4 years before FFVII starts. It gives a little back story into what happened before that fateful day when Barret lost his right hand trying to save his best friend, Dyne. I'm hoping to humanize and give a little more personality to the characters. Excessive language will be used, hence the R rating. This story will have three parts, this one obviously being the first. All three parts will feature two narrators. Barret and…someone you'll get to know down the road. Someone on the enemy line…

Rolling Chamber

Part 1 of 3

Didn't see it coming. I should've, now that I think about it. Tifa always tells me there was no way I could've predicted it. But I still can't help but feel guilty about it. So much confusion…those four years ago…

***

My name is Shawn Harlan. I used to make a living as a farmer for Gongaga, but that got old real fast. It was the family business, but I guess the farmer gene skips a generation. I wanted something exciting to do for a living, and chasing crows out of the cornfield wasn't exactly it. That's why I was at the Shinra's employment area. I wanted to enlist as a soldier. I fantasized about becoming famous like Sephiroth. Well, except for the part where Sephiroth ended up getting killed on a mission. I'd walk the fine line, I'd know when it got too far. Maybe I could become a First Class SOLDIER and get some respect for once in my life. I knew I was a good fighter, I was one of the best brawlers in Gongaga.

I walked up to the counter and they had this sweet piece of ass sitting behind the desk and taking applications. She had blonde hair and a real slutty, low-cut red dress on with a great figure. Her tits were nearly popping out of that thing. When she saw me walking up to her, she stood up and greeted me.

"Hi there," she said, smiling. "What job will you be applying for."

"I'll be enlisting for the Shinra army," I said. "I hear they're accepting applicants."

"All right, I'll be giving you a simple test. You'll be pitted up against one of the soldiers we already have. If you win, you join."

"Whoa, I'm gonna be fighting already?" I was confused, since I thought the standard procedure was for them to look at my application before they could see what I was made of.

"Yes, well, we do things a little differently here at Shinra, Inc. Ever since Sephiroth was killed at Nibelheim, we haven't gotten many people to join lately. So if you don't mind, we'll begin the initiation test. Say hello to Lenoard Phelps."

A big guy walks in at the cue. Phelps had a pretty good build and was practically towering over me. His head was shaved bald, busted teeth and had a Shinra getup on. He was grinning at me, an intimidation tactic I was all too familiar with.

***

"C'mon, Dyne! We gotta do this! It's for our own good."

"Barret, I can't believe you're selling out to them. The coal mines have been with us for as long as anybody can remember and I'm not gonna let some big-shot corporation replace it with some fuckin' machine!"

I landed on the couch, exausted. It was gonna be hard to convince Dyne to let the Mako Reactor be built. I couldn't blame him, though. It took me a while to be convinced, too. Why couldn't I get him to understand that things would be better with Mako? A week ago, Shinra, Inc. sent a girl named Scarlet here to get our permission to have one of their Mako Reactors built in North Corel. Getting workers to mine coal out of the coal mines took money and a lot of time. But with the Mako Reactor, we would save a lot of time and we could get the miners to work on more important stuff like farming or building. At first, I didn't want anything to do with it, but after Myrna got sick the other day, I just took that as a sign from God. Scarlet says that the Mako Reactor can generate a special kind of healing herb for Myrna. The local doctors said it was terminal. That was all the convincing I needed. She would die in a month. And I wasn't gonna lose my wife over my pride. 

"…We'll talk later," I said, pointing my index finger at him as I was leaving the room. He pointed one back at me but not the index. I shrugged it off since I knew how much Dyne cared for the coal mines. This whole Mako deal was getting everyone emotional.

I walked to backed to the hospital where my wife, Myrna, was at. She was wrapped up in blankets with a wet towel on her forehead. Her eyelids were just barely open. It hurt me to look at her like that. But she was still beautiful as ever.

"Hey, baby. You doin' okay?" I asked, feeling her head.

"Just…fine," she whispered.

"Dyne still doesn't want to go ahead with the Mako plan. I can't get him to do it. I just can't understand him sometimes, I mean, sure, we've had these mines for generations. But it's the sign of the times, and he doesn't--"

"Barret…Maybe he's right…Maybe…we shouldn't let…Shinra…build it…"

"But if I lose you because of those God damn coal mines--"

"The coal mines…will be around…forever. I'm gonna…die…sooner or later…"

"…don't say that…"

"…maybe…now…is my time…"

"No, it's not. God is giving us a second chance. With the Mako Reactor, you'll live. I love you, and we ain't gonna be ripped apart because of no coal mine."

The talk with Myrna got me so depressed that I had to take another walk.

***

"Okay, new guy, take the first shot and the test will begin," said the receptionist, standing a good distance away from the inevitable violence.

I took a hard swing at Phelps' face. It hurt real bad.

"Tough motherfucker, aren't you?" I said, trying to regain the feeling in my knuckles. Phelps threw two hooks at my face. I fell down on the ground. Phelps took me by the collar and smacked me into a wall. I fell down hard. Then he kicked me in the ribs while I was on the ground. I started getting embarrassed since that cute receptionist was watching this humiliating fight.

"Had enough, rookie?" he said, still with the stupid grin.

"Fuck you," I said, daring him to do something else. He did. He grabbed my neck and threw me about 6 yards.

"Sonofabitch…" I thought out loud, struggling to get up. Just then, I had a pretty wicked idea. I didn't wanna do it, but I wasn't gonna let him get out of this fight without some bruises. I started charging at Phelps. He looked pretty cocky and seemed like he thought he knew what I was gonna do. I balled both of my hands together into a fist and swung it at him like a bat. That hurt me even harder, but at least it knocked him down. I grabbed Phelps by the feet and threw him straight into one of Shinra's neon sign. He was screaming like a baby because of the electricity coursing through him, which made me real happy.

I looked over at the reception girl and she was clapping. I was surprised, since it was such a dirty move.

"Excellent," she said with a smile. "That's exactly what we need in the troop. You far exceeded my expectations."

"Well…thanks, I guess." I didn't know whether to be flattered by her approval or disgusted. I shouldn't be one to judge, since I was the one who pulled the low blow.

"What's your name, kid?" she asked.

"Shawn Harlan."

"And how old are you?"

"Uh…17."

"Hmm…A little under the age qualification, but I think for you, we can make an exception. Oh, and by the way, you can call me Scarlet."

***

I went up to see Eleanor, Dyne's wife. Maybe I could figure what's holdin' Dyne back. I could try to at least get Eleanor on our side. I knocked on the door, waitin' a bit. Then it opened.

"Hi, Barret," said Eleanor, with their new baby in her arms.

"Hey, is Dyne here right now?" I asked.

"No, he's not," said Eleanor. "Why don't you come inside?"

I walked in and took a seat on the couch. Eleanor did the same.

"Wanna hold the baby?"

"…Sorry, not right now."

"What's with you and Dyne? I haven't seen you talkin' to each other in a while." 

"…It's about Shinra's new deal."

"Oh."

"Yeah, Dyne doesn't want the reactor built, but if we don't do it, I'm'a lose my wife! I know it's a kinda selfish, sacrificin' the coal mines for my wife and whatnot, but demolishin' the coal mines ain't gonna hurt nobody!"

"I don't think Dyne's so much as worried about the coal mines as he is about the Mako Reactor. I hear him say a lot of nasty things about Shinra, he just doesn't seem to trust 'em for some reason."

"It's been tough for me, too. But we gotta move ahead. We can't be stuck in the past forever."

"I guess that's another thing Dyne's afraid of. Moving ahead. Tell you what, Barret. Let me try and talk to him about it. He might change his mind."

"Thanks, El. 'Preciate it."

Tomorrow, we were gonna have another meeting with Scarlet and some of the elders of North Corel. Try and get Dyne to jump on the bandwagon. I can't lose Myrna, I just can't.

***

Turns out that Scarlet the "receptionist" was actually the Head of Weapons Development at Shinra, Inc. Why she didn't just pay someone else to do the reception work, I'll never know. She takes me to the barracks and introduces me to the soldiers. There were only two others, for some reason.

Scarlet motioned her hand to each soldier as she said their names. "McKinley, Vazquez, I want you to meet our newest recruit…uhm, what was it again?"

"Shawn. Uh, Shawn Harlan."

"Right, Shawn Harlem. I'll be preparing for our meeting at North Corel tomorrow so why don't you two show Shawn some of the ropes."

Scarlet turned around and walked out of the barracks. If she was actually wearing any underwear, it must've been custom-colored for her skin.

"So…where are you from, kid?" I assumed this guy was McKinley.

"Hm? Oh, Gongaga. Used to be a farmer, but farm life's kinda boring, so I figure I'd join Shinra's army. Hey, let me ask you guys a question."

"Go ahead."

"Why are there so few of us? I mean, you'd think with a corporation as big as Shinra, you'd be crawlin' with soldiers."

The guy who I assumed was Vazquez replied to this. "Well, we're actually Scarlet's bodyguards. Most of the soldiers get sent over to Heidegger's. And Heidegger won't let Scarlet pick her own guards from his troop."

"But…I don't really wanna be a bodyguard. Can't I join Heidegger's troop?"

"Hey, you said the farm life's boring, right?" said McKinley. "Well, Scarlet goes to plenty of dangerous places that require some bodyguards. You get some stuff here that you'll never get outta Heidegger's troop, and you'll see a lot of action, especially since there are only four of us right now."

"Four? But who's the--"

Just then, a bruised and bloodied Phelps staggered into the barracks. I couldn't help but let out a quiet whimper.

****

Continued in "Rolling Chamber, Part 2"


	2. Part 2

****

Rolling Chamber

Part 2 of 3

"Oh, holy shit," I said under my breath. So Phelps was part of Scarlet's troop too, eh? I dunno why, but I was almost shaking. I guess I was really scared of the guy. But of course, I wasn't gonna let him find out about that. Phelps was staggering around the barracks. I don't even think he saw me. I threw him into that neon sign not too long ago, and I knew he wanted some retribution.

He finally lifted his head up and saw me. "Y--You pussy-fightin' motherfucker…" he growled.

"Well, I guess you already know Phelps, eh," said Vazquez, curious as to why.

Phelps teetered some more, then collapsed on the floor. His uniform was all ripped up on the back and I could see he had an Ifrit tattoo all over it. I guess he believes in those stupid summoner gods.

"Oh, Jesus, that was a close one," I sighed, thankful that he fell.

"How do you know Phelps, Harlan?" asked McKinley.

"Yeah…well, I had this initiation test, and Scarlet had me fight Phelps. I…kinda pulled a dirty move on him. I guess that's why he's so pissed."

"Nah, it wouldn't've mattered," replied McKinley. "Phelps is a sore loser anyway. He can't stand getting beaten."

"Uh…right."

I shot the shit with McKinley and Vazquez some more. They say Phelps is the toughest guy in Scarlet's troop. McKinley was pretty cool, but he had these freaky lookin' scars on his cheek. They looked pretty recent. I asked him about it, but he didn't wanna get into it. He was also the oldest of us, at 22. Phelps was 21. Vazquez, I guess, was Spanish and closest to my age. He was 19 and I was 17. But I told them I was 19 too, since I got the feeling that maybe Scarlet was bending the age requirement by letting me join. Since it was it was getting dark, we turned in for the night. I was still a little scared that Phelps might wake up in the middle of the night and try to kill me, so I tried to stay up as long as possible.

***

"B--Barret…"

I just barely opened my eyes. That was Myrna calling for me. I looked out at the sky. It looked like it was just a little after midnight. The hospital folk allowed me to stay inside the room with Myrna for the night, they even got me a blanket.

"What is it, baby?" I asked her.

"I…I really don't…feel so good…right now…" She could barely speak anymore. It really hurt to see her in such bad shape, but I had to be strong. If I couldn't even be strong for her, how could she possibly find the will to live?

"You want me to get you something? Water? Another pillow?"

"No, no…"

"Don't worry. I'm doin' the best I can with Dyne. I talked with Eleanor earlier today…or was it yesterday…? I dunno, anyway, I talked to El and she said she's gonna try to convince him to go with the Mako plan. We're also gonna be havin' a meeting later today with the Shinra. It'll all be over pretty soon, baby."

"No…I mean…my hand…it…"

I took her hand. It was wet. I looked at it, but I couldn't tell what was the matter since it was so dark. Then I realized what it was. Her hand was covered in blood.

"Oh my god, no…" I said. I ran out of the room. "Someone! Help me! There's a patient who needs some help here!"

"Calm down, Mr. Wallace," said one of the nurses. "What's the problem?"

"My wife, she's bleedin'! Get a doctor to Room 6!"

The nurse went to a doctor and told him about it. We rushed back into the room and the doctor wrapped some cloth around Myrna's bloody hand. They said she was gonna be okay, at least for another couple of weeks. At that point, I knew I had to get Dyne to listen. I just had to…

***

I still couldn't get to sleep. The idea that Phelps could wake up at any minute and pounce on me was absolutely frightening. But I was slowly drifting off. I closed my eyes and began to unwind. That's when I felt someone grab the fly of my pants and unzip it.

"Whoa, holy fuckin' shit!" I screamed. The only thing scarier than the idea of Phelps pouncing on me was the idea of him mounting me. Whoever was fuckin' around with my pants immediately let go. I zipped my fly back up, got out of bed and ran over to the light switch. That's when he pounced. He grabbed something metal and swung it across the back of my head. I was out cold.

The next morning, I woke up with a splitting fuckin' headache. I was slumped over near the light switch. Everyone else was awake, too. McKinley and Vazquez were holding Phelps back from killing me.

"Harlan, you little fag," he said, with clenched teeth. "Pullin' dirty tricks on me, eh? You're gonna regret it, boy."

"I'm the fag?!? You were the one messing with my pants last night!"

"I got no clue what you're babblin' about, Harlan! I was out cold all night."

"The hell you were!"

"All right, calm down, the both of you!" yelled McKinley, taking charge of the situation. "Look, I don't what happened to you last night, Harlan, but Phelps is tellin' the truth. He was left unconscious in exactly the same position he was last night."

"Oh, so it was Vazquez!" I said, seeing the situation more clearly.

"What was Vazquez?" said Vazquez, with a low, menacing tone of voice.

"…I don't know what kind of pranks you guys pull in the Shinra army. I mean, I 'm a good sport about practical jokes and all, but fuckin' around with my cock is goin' too far!"

"You actually think that was me?!?" said Vazquez, getting pretty irritated.

" Enough! Nobody seems to know what you're talkin' about, so maybe it was just a dream."

"Maybe a good dream…" Phelps snidely retorted.

"Go fuck yourself," I replied.

"JUST SHUT THE FUCK UP AND LISTEN TO ME!" shouted McKinley, as loud as he could. "We're not gonna get anywhere yelling all morning, so we might as well put this aside for another time. Everyone get dressed. Scarlet's gonna need some bodyguards later this afternoon."

I reluctantly walked back to my bed and got into the Shinra uniform. I just realized that whoever knocked me out probably raped me. I was getting really scared, and at the same time really angry. My ass wasn't hurting or anything, but I decided thinking about it too much would make me gay. I dunno who did that, but I'd get them worse.

About twenty minutes later, we walked over to Scarlet's office where she had called for us. When I walked in, I could smell her perfume. I began to realize that the person who was messing with my pants last night actually had perfume on. The same perfume Scarlet did. This got me really weirded out. It's not that I don't want Scarlet, but the way she acted was creeping me out.

"All right, men, I'm going to North Corel today to talk with those hicks about building another Mako Reactor over there. I originally planned on bringing Phelps and McKinley with me, but it seems Phelps will have to rest up due to his injuries from fighting Harlan yesterday. Ah, I think I'll take Vazquez and McKinley with--"

"Ma'am," interrupted McKinley. "I think it would be best if you took me and Harlan for this one. We probably won't be doing much fighting, and he can learn what do as your bodyguard without being bogged down with information like 'which weapon to use' and 'who to protect first'. "

"Hmm…" said Scarlet, to herself. "I suppose you're right. Fine, we'll take you and Harlan. Now leave me alone until you receive further notice. I still need to do more research on these filthy North Corelians," said Scarlet, spitefully.

"Yes, ma'am," we all replied.

After we left her office, I decided to talk to McKinley. "Hey, McKinley, thanks for hookin' me up with a mission," I said.

"I wasn't getting you a mission. I was saving you from Phelps. If we leave the two of you alone in the barracks, God only knows what'll happen to you."

"Hey, I can handle myself. I took him down in the initiation test, didn't I?

"Sure, rookie. Sure."

***

"All right, is everyone here?" asked the Village Headman.

"Everyone except…Dyne," I said, sadly.

"Where could he be?" asked Headman Jacob Farber. "We're lucky that the Shinra are running late. We can't look foolish in front of them."

"Sorry I'm late folks," said Dyne, at the doorway of the Headman's home. "I…had a little argument with the wife."

"Aw, no," I said to myself. I didn't want Dyne and Eleanor to get into a fight over this.

"Well, take your seat," said Farber. All the most respected townsfolk were there. Me, Dyne, Headman Farber and two elders. We all agreed that the reactor should be built. All of us, except Dyne.

"Where's the Shinras?" asked Dyne.

"They should be coming any--"

"Sorry to keep you…people…waiting," said Scarlet, just arriving. I really didn't like the way she emphasized "people". Almost like she was holding back from saying something else. But I decided to ignore it. Scarlet also had two Shinra soldiers with her.

***

God in heaven, Scarlet wasn't kidding when she called the North Corelians "filthy". They smell like they've been through hell. If it wasn't for Scarlet's perfume, I think I might've choked to death. In fact, the more I smelled that stuff, the more I wanted to ask her if she was the one who snuck up on me last night. But then again, maybe one of the guys like to use women's perfume or something. McKinley didn't seem to have any problem with the filthy Corelian smell, though. I guess he can control himself better.

***

One of the soldiers seemed a little shaky. I was guessin' he was a new recruit or something. It looked like he was about to faint.

"Thank you for coming, Scarlet," said the Headman. "We do appreciate your patience with our decision. It is a bit difficult to let go of our coal mines, since they've been with us for so long…"

"I can completely understand," assured Scarlet. "I, myself, had grown up in Nibelheim, where they are especially famous for their mountains. It would kill me to lose Mt. Nibel for the new Mako Reactors, but luckily we got to keep both."

***

I looked over at McKinley when Scarlet said this. Vazquez told me that she grew up in Midgar. I could read McKinley's eyes. He was telling me Scarlet was bluffing, trying to get the townsfolk to think that she knows where they're coming from.

***

"I am glad you can see things from our standpoint, Scarlet," said Headman Farber. "So, surely you can understand why Dyne is having so much trouble with the Mako Reactor. We don't want to lose our coal mines, but most of us realize the helpfulness the reactor could provide."

"I'm sorry, but I'm just not comfortable with Mako replacing coal," said Dyne, holding back his contempt for Shinra. "It just doesn't seem right…"

"You've got to understand, Dyne," said Scarlet, sympathetically. "Everything is Mako now. Gongaga, Nibelheim, there are even a few on the Northern Continent…"

"Myrna's got a terminal illness," I pleaded with him. "With the Mako Reactor, we can cure it."

"That's right, we--"

"Damnit, Barret," interrupted Dyne. "You know how much I care about you and Myrna. So you know how painful it is for me to hold my ground like this."

"Dyne…her hand was bleeding last night. She lost a lot of blood. I don't want Myrna to suffer no more."

When I said that, Dyne's lower lip started quivering. He couldn't take it anymore. Everyone had turned against him, even Eleanor. Dyne broke down in tears, covering his face. "All right, fine! Why don't you answer this question, Scarlet! If you can make a special healing potion from your machines to cure Myrna's sickness, why don't you just make one from one of the existing reactors and bring it to us. A life is in danger, God damn it!"

***

Wow, I had no idea what the problem was with that guy. Mako's done nothing but good for Gongaga. But we all knew why Scarlet never made a healing potion somewhere else and brought it here. To pressure the yokels into agreeing. And it looked like it was working, until the crying guy put the pieces together.

***

Dyne was right. Were these Shinra people tryin' to play God with us? Let someone die to get a piece of North Corel? This was making me sick, and I didn't know who trust.

"…Well, you see, there are no nearby reactors," replied Scarlet, coolly. "And my employer had told me that I couldn't leave the camp area we set up on this continent until we got a response from you…people."

***

Another bluff. This time I didn't need to read McKinley's eyes, and this time, I don't think it was quite as successful.

***

She did it again! Paused before she said people. That wasn't no accident. Maybe Dyne was right. We need--

"All right, fine!" said Dyne, as he threw his arms up in the air. "Do it, just do it. But the first thing you do after that thing gets built is make the healing potion, you get me?"

"Perfectly," said Scarlet, with a smile that made my skin crawl. Dyne finally agreed to the Mako plan, and now I'm the one with doubts. But…we need to get that thing built quick, before Myrna loses too much blood.

***

When the hicks finally agreed to have the Mako Reactor built, Scarlet whispered to me and McKinley, "Let's get out of Dodge, fast, before they change their minds." Why would they change their minds? Is there something wrong with Mako that I haven't found out about yet?

***

The next day, they brought a scientist to North Corel named Dr. Hojo to make the healing potion for us. It took half a day, but it was a lot faster than I thought it would take. We brought the potion to Myrna. When she drank it, she started getting better immediately. I hugged her. Almost started crying. I wouldn't let anything like that happen again. We don't even know how she got sick, but I'm glad they could cure her. I felt like God was watching over us that day, the shepherd protecting his sheep. Dyne was still upset about giving up the coal mines, but at least we could try and patch up our friendship again. But I still couldn't get that feeling out of the back of my head. Like we'd made a deal with the devil…

****

Concluded in "Rolling Chamber, Part 3"


	3. Part 3

****

Rolling Chamber

Part 3 of 3

"God, I so hate those North Corelians!" sighed Scarlet on the helicopter ride back to Shinra HQ. McKinley was piloting. "I just can't believe how long it took for them to make a decision. And for what? Why does President Shinra even want North Corel?!? Dirtiest fuckin' place on earth…"

Scarlet, I guess, was letting out some steam. Maybe she was on the rag, I dunno. McKinley still looked expressionless. He can really keep a stone face under all kinds of circumstances. I was getting uncomfortable since I didn't know what I was supposed to do when Scarlet got like this.

***

5 Days Later…

***

This past week has really been a blessing. Ever since we got the Mako Reactor built here, things have been great. Myrna recovered from that terminal illness, we're getting so many more things done since the miners have switched to all kinds of jobs, I'm even on good terms with Dyne again. The only problem was that Dyne was still bummed out about losing the coal mines.

At the time, Dyne and I had left Gongaga a day ago after talking with them to see if there was anything we needed to be aware of about the Mako Reactor. They haven't seen any flaws over there yet, so we could only assume things would be okay. We'd been gone for two days now. It was a long trip to from Gongaga and back, but we were almost home.

***

I'd been training with McKinley and Vazquez every day since that meeting with the North Corelians. They taught me how to handle the grenade, and all types of weapons that the Shinra uses. Phelps had cooled down and hasn't tried to kill me lately, but he was still pretty cold to me. I still hadn't talked to Scarlet about the night that I felt someone screwing with my pants, but since it hasn't happened anymore, I'd decided to let sleeping dogs sleep, or however that one saying went.

"Scarlet wants to see us," said Phelps after returning to the barracks.

"About time," I said. She hasn't gone anywhere that required bodyguards in a while, and I was getting pretty bored with the training.

All four of us went over to Scarlet's office. She looked like she was panicking, something I've never seen from her.

"…What the fuck does that mean?!?" said Scarlet, talking into her cell phone. "…What the hell are we gonna do about this? …I don't really…I don't…I don't fucking care about them, but what if the press finds out about this?!? …And it isn't my fault, damnit! …All right, fine Rufus, you do that. I'll take care of my things, and you take care of things on the flipside."

She finished the…well, the conversation, for lack of a better word…with whoever that was. She turned to us with a glint of malice in her eyes.

"All right, I know it's been a while, but I need some guards today."

"How many?" asked McKinley.

"All of you," said Scarlet, bluntly. "The Corel Reactor blew up. They sent Hojo down there to see what happened. Turns out we were missing a few nuts and bolts. Some very crucial nuts and bolts. We can't let the media find out about this, or we'll lose many lucrative clients. We'll be getting some special help today. Heidegger decided to lend me some of his soldiers for this sensitive situation. You all will need to kill anyone and everyone who survived the explosion. We have to make it seem like a rebel faction within North Corel blew the reactor up, and we're just the good folks cleaning up the mess. No one will know the truth about this."

My stomach was turning inside me. This just wasn't right. I didn't want to kill any innocent folk, filthy or not. I really didn't want to go through with this, but I also didn't want to be the first to object since I was still the new guy.

"Yes, ma'am," said the other three.

"Harlan…something wrong?" asked Scarlet.

"Uh, yeah. I mean, no. Nothing's wrong," I said, without much enthusiasm.

"All right, then," said Scarlet. "Let's go."

I asked McKinley about whether he thought this was morally wrong or not. His response?

"Welcome to Shinra."

We met up with five other soldiers that Heidegger let Scarlet borrow. We took two helicopters, one for us, one for them. But when we landed at North Corel, I just couldn't believe what I was seeing. There was a whole lotta smoke coming from where the Corel Reactor was supposed to be, and fire all around it. There was a slew of houses on fire, and even some people, too. Heidegger's boys were equipped with flame throwers to make it look like a bigger explosion than it already was. McKinley, Vazquez and Phelps got out of the helicopter without any hesitation and ran into the battlefield of Shinra's making. Since they didn't even have a hint of objection, I decided I had to say something.

"Scarlet, wait," I said, grabbing her arm. "Isn't there another way? I mean, without having to kill so many innocent folk?"

"Why? You scared?"

"I'm not scared of anything," I replied. "I just think this is going over the line. I have morals, not a lot, but the ones that I got, I don't cross."

"What do you think you're doing? Trying to do the right thing?"

She pulled me closer to her and planted her lips on mine. She was licking my lips, and I slowly opened my mouth for her. She broke the kiss just as I started feeling her up.

"Now do you see why destroying this place isn't so bad?" she said, with a wicked smile. "I'll give you more later, if you just do me this one favor."

This girl was evil. She was truly, evil incarnate. She knew what she had, and how to use it. At this point, I had no doubt in my mind that Scarlet was the one who was messing with my pants a week ago.

"Y-You're crazy," I blurted out.

"Is that a yes?" she asked.

"…I guess it is," I said, looking down at the ground.

"Good boy," she said, patting me on the head. "Now go join the others."

I sighed, and ran into the chaos. I ran past two of Heidegger's soldiers setting fire to the houses. I put on my gas mask to block out the smoke. All of the soldiers were killing people, shooting them, setting them on fire…it was vicious. I ran inside one of the houses that weren't burned down yet to look for any survivors that needed to be unsurvived, so to speak. Just my luck, inside was a woman holding her baby. There was no way I could take a baby's life. Maybe the woman's, but I just couldn't kill a baby.

"P-Please…don't hurt us," cried the woman. "My baby's barely 2 months old! Stay away! Please!"

I stood there, thinking a while. I didn't want to break my morals, but I also really wanted to nail Scarlet. The woman getting down on her knees begging me to spare their lives wasn't helping me concentrate any. But I finally made my decision.

I shot the woman in the chest and grabbed the baby next to her. Some of the blood splattered off the woman and onto the baby. I wiped the blood off the best I could with my hands. I gave the baby my gas mask since I knew it wouldn't last long under all the smoke. I put my cap over face so that I could get through the smoke, myself. Most of the soldiers around me were looking at me funny since I was running away from Corel. I knew I couldn't get the baby out of town since Scarlet would catch me so I left it just outside where there wasn't so much smoke. By the time I finished that, Vazquez found me and told me to go see Scarlet. She said she needed some protection.

***

Me and Dyne just finished gettin' through Mt. Corel and were headin' back to town.

"Barret, let's just jog the rest of the way home. It's not too far now."

"Man, I'm tired. I'm'a take sweet time gettin' back."

"All right, fine, we'll walk it--"

We noticed the Village Headman Jacob Farber runnin' up to us on the railroad tracks, flailin' his arms all over the place. Me and Dyne started runnin' up to him and he told what was wrong.

"Ah, oh thank God, I…found you guys," he said, completely out of breath, sweat drippin' all over him. He was holdin' his side, so I guess he had a stomach cramp. "You gotta come quick! Corel's on fire!"

"What you talkin' about?" I asked him. "How'd that happen?"

"That…that God forsaken reactor blew, and now the town's on fire! You gotta hurry and help us!" said Headman Farber.

Dyne and I jumped off the tracks and ran up to the cliff where we could see North Corel. There was a huge fire blazing all over town. Nothin' but smoke in the air above it. I started shakin'. I felt weak. There was no way anyone could've survived that thing.

***

McKinley, Vazquez, Phelps and I met up with each other where Scarlet had told us to meet. They all looked pretty bruised and dirty. But Phelps looked like hell. He was bloody and limping, a lot like the time I threw him into one of Shinra's neon sign.

"What happened to you?" asked Scarlet, her face cringing.

"Ghuh…"

"He got a couple of chairs smashed over him," said Vazquez, vouching for Phelps. "He also got trapped in a burning house because of one of Heidegger's stupid ass soldiers. Had to run through a wall of fire to escape. One of the townsfolk had a gun and the bullet just grazed his cheek. Looks fractured. The guy's in pretty bad condition."

I felt pretty small right then. Phelps had gone through all that, and all I did was run around.

"You look pretty clean, Harlan," said Scarlet. "Did you even go to Corel?"

"I did," I said. "But…I wasn't in there as long as the others."

"Ah…yes, well there are a few strays that managed to get past you soldiers so I need you to go kill them. Follow the railroad tracks leading out of Corel and you'll find them."

***

They were all lost in the fire. My wife, my friends, relatives, all gone in a puff of smoke. 

"God…no," I said, almost in a trance. "Oh, Lord…MYRNA!"

"Come on, they just might still be alive," assured the Headman.

"Yeah, Barret," Dyne said, as he put his hand on my shoulder. "We can't waste time here."

"A-All right," I said. "We gotta hurry."

The Headman was about to turn around, when a group of soldiers shot him with their rifles. They were standing on the railroad tracks we just got off of.

"Fuck!" said Dyne. "Shinra! Move, Barret!"

Dyne ran to a small opening under the tracks. I was just about to, but the Shinras started shootin' at me.

I was dodging 'em the best I could. I don't know how I didn't get hit since there was so many bullets comin' at me. Maybe it was because I wanted to hold on to life for Myrna. If she was still alive, I didn't wanna leave her a widow. I jumped out of the way of the gunfire and over to where Dyne was hidin'.

"All right," said Dyne. "They know where we are, so we're just gonna have to gun it. Let's try to run along that cliff area over there. It's our best chance of gettin' out of here alive."

Dyne pointed ahead, to the path along the cliff. He ran fast, but the Shinras were prepared for us to run where we did. They started shootin' at Dyne and he tripped and fell. I caught Dyne's hand right before he fell off the edge of the cliff. Their eyes were trained on us, but I tried to be strong for Dyne.

"Dyne, we gonna make it. Just hang on."

"Oh, God," gulped Dyne. "That's a big drop."

"Don't look down! Just work with me!"

***

They were dead. The black guy holding onto the white guy's hand. Phelps was trying to shoot at their hands to break their link, but he was too badly injured to get a good shot.

"You call that shooting?!?" screamed Scarlet, in disgust. She kicked Phelps off of the tracks with her heel and Phelps hit the dirt head first. I heard a loud, sickening crack come from his head. Phelps was screaming in pain since his landing caused his neck to break. That was brutal. He was a prick, but even he didn't deserve all the pain he'd gone through that day.

Everything started slowing down at this moment, like a freakish slow-motion replay at the end of a game. I could remember everything right down to the smallest detail. McKinley positioned the linked hands into the crosshairs. The trigger was pulled back. His eyes lit at the loud sound of the gunfire. The shells were flying out of the gun. The ammo was rolling through the chamber.

The bullets flew into the dirt surrounding their linked hands. Dirt was flying. The bullets hit their target. Blood was flying. They hit their hands and the black guy let go. The white guy fell to his death, screaming in pain. There was a lot of blood coming from the black guy's hand.

***

"Arrrrggggghhhhhhh!" I screamed. The Shinras shot my hand off with their rifles. There was blood all over where my hand used to be and I dropped Dyne out of the pain. But I couldn't sit around whinin', or they woulda killed me right then and there. When I got hit by those bullets, I fell down on the ground and played dead. They bought the act and ran off.

***

It wasn't fair. It really wasn't. North Corel didn't do anything wrong, but Shinra had to come in and wreck their lives. I was disgusted with what happened that day. I didn't realize what really went down in Shinra. I heard the rumors, but I always thought those people were just paranoid. That didn't stop me from refusing Scarlet's offer, though. We had sex in her office after the mission, but I still couldn't get rid of the guilt. I left Shinra's ranks the next morning. I went back to the farm life in Gongaga. It was still boring, but at least it was honest work. I couldn't even hold my head up when I walked past people. It took me a while to recover from that time, but there's not a day that goes by that I don't think about all the mistakes I made, all the things I should've done.

***

That day, I swore revenge on Shinra. I wanted to kill them all, with every ounce of my life. I'd get them back for destroyin' my town. They wouldn't get away with what they did that day…

After the Shinra guards split, I got up lookin' for survivors. Thank God, there was a lot more than I thought that lived the attack. Most of them ran into the Village Headman's secret basement under his house. But they wasn't happy when they saw me. All the people who agreed to the Mako plan was dead. All except me. So they all blamed me for the whole mess. And I couldn't disagree with 'em. I just felt so guilty about fallin' for Shinra's lies. They didn't respect me anymore. They whispered behind my back and they always stared at me like I was an outsider or somethin'. I could tell I wasn't welcome no more.

But when I left, I found Dyne and Eleanor's baby, Marlene, on the outskirts of town. I didn't know how she got there and I still don't, to this day. She had some dried blood over her, but luckily, it wasn't her own. She even had a gas mask on, so I knew that someone was watchin' out for her. I didn't know who, but I wish I could pay 'em back. Without Marlene, I probably would've ended up killin' myself since there was no point to my life anymore. But I had to go on, I had to take care of Marlene. I don't know how I'd get through life nowadays. Marlene is pretty much all I live for. I wouldn't let Dyne and Eleanor down.

***

Barret Wallace stood up. It had been one year after the devastation that had hit his hometown, North Corel. It felt good for Barret to reminisce about memories past, even the painful ones. He never wanted to forget what happened that year ago to preserve the memory of his friends and family. But he wished he could do the reminiscing where the dead were buried, North Corel. But the townsfolk wouldn't allow it. They would never let him return. So he had to take his prayers to the next best place, Bermuda. Bermuda was a garden located near the chocobo stables and the Midgar desert. It was a place of prayer for people who had lost their loved ones and couldn't give a proper burial because their bodies could never be found. Bermuda was a frequently visited place since there were so many who dared to challenge to Midgar Zolom and failed.

After Barret wiped the tears away from his eyes, he looked to his side and saw a man kneeling on the ground a few feet away from him. His face was buried in the garden and he was murmuring something about Corel. Barret was curious about this, and approached the man.

"Hey, you okay there?" asked Barret.

"Yeah, I'll be fine," replied the man. "I just need to be alone."

"What's your name," asked Barret.

"My name? It's Shawn, why do you ask?"

"Well, I didn't mean to eavesdrop, but I heard you say somethin' about North Corel and I thought I might'a known you since that's my hometown."

Shawn wiped his face from a tissue and got up. He had sleek black hair, with a black trench coat on. And for the first time, he actually looked at Barret.

"Y-You're from…Corel?

"Yeah," said Barret. "If you don't mind, can I ask who you were prayin' for? I might know 'em."

"Well, actually--" Shawn started, but he noticed Barret had a bionic, metal hand and his eyes widened.

"What's wrong? Ain't you ever seen a brotha with a bionic hand?" said Barret, jokingly.

Shawn took a closer look at Barret's face. He recognized him as one of the townspeople of North Corel. The one who got his hand shot by Shawn's buddy, McKinley. They left him for dead that day, but somehow, he managed to survive.

(My God), he thought to himself. (This man was from Corel. I never had the courage to go back to that town and tell them how sorry I was for helping Shinra kill so many people. But maybe now, I can try to redeem myself, just a little.)

"Tell you what," said Shawn. "Why don't I buy you a free lunch. I know the guy who owns the chocobo stables up north and since we're both North Corel natives, I figure I should do something for you."

"Really?" asked Barret, surprised by Shawn's hospitality. "Uh…sure, why not."

Barret took his 1 year-old daughter, Marlene, with her. They talked on the way to the chocobo stables. They talked about their life, what they'd gone through, their hate for Shinra. But Shawn was careful to not talk about his short stint in the Shinra Army. When they got to the stables, the owner gave them some free chicken to eat for lunch. They ate for a while, Shawn was down to his last chicken wing and soon, the two would have to part ways.

"All right," said Barret. "I think you've avoided this question long enough. Who were you prayin' for back at Bermuda?"

Shawn sighed. "Well…I did some pretty bad things…and I was praying for the families of the lives I'd…messed with."

"How long ago did it happen?"

"…About a year ago."

"You still feel guilty about it?"

Shawn opened his mouth to say yes. But then he started thinking about the question before he responded. Finally, he came to his answer.

"No."

****

The End


End file.
